Within – Beyond is a contemporary dance diptych that explores the relationship between the inner and outer dimensions of human existence. In a world of constant stimuli, accelerated rhythms, and an ever-growing connection to technology, the performance questions how individuals experience themselves, others, and the space that surrounds them. The body becomes a site of perception, transition, and transformation—a meeting point between the personal and the collective, the intimate and the social. Through movement, the work raises questions of presence, identity, and relationships while searching for ways to maintain a connection with oneself and with the environment of which we are a part.
The first part of the diptych descends into the individual’s inner world—a black hole of self-reflection, where confronting one’s own reflection becomes increasingly difficult. Beneath external appearances, social roles, and masks lies a labyrinth of thoughts, fears, and unspoken emotions. The body becomes a space of transformation: from confinement and alienation toward gradual openness, like a caterpillar undergoing an inner metamorphosis in search of the possibility to unfold into a butterfly. Out of isolation, where each person remains trapped within their own mind, the possibility of liberation and genuine connection with others slowly begins to emerge.
The second part of the diptych expands the perspective from the individual to the realm of relationships. While the first part is intimate and introspective, the second explores encounters, distances, attraction, loss, and renewed closeness between people. On stage, a network of relationships unfolds, where individuals come and go, connect and separate, only to search for one another again. From personal experience, the work evolves into a collective dimension—the realization that only through human connection, collaboration, and shared movement do we create the possibility to truly bring about change and create something together.
Through an in-depth creative process the choreographers investigate the body’s responses to internal and external impulses, discovering new movement thresholds, physical strategies, and ways of organizing movement that emerge directly from the work’s central themes. The diptych brings together two distinct choreographic approaches within a shared conceptual framework, where the contrast between artistic methods enables a rich, multilayered exploration of the same fundamental questions. The first part is choreographed by Michal Rynia and Nastja Bremec Rynia, while the second part is choreographed by Miloš Isailović.
"Within – Beyond invites the audience into an experience that transcends narrative interpretation, opening a space for reflection on one’s own place in the world. The performance serves as a direct response to the times we live in, positioning the body as the most fundamental site of human experience."
- Michal Rynia & Nastja Bremec Rynia
RTVSLO.SI: Znotraj - Onkraj, plesni diptih, ki premišljuje o lastnem položaju v svetu
The contemporary dance company MN Dance Company premiered the diptych Within – Beyond at the SNG Nova Gorica Theatre, created by choreographers Michal Rynia, Nastja Bremec Rynia, and Miloš Isailović.
By Breda Pahor
NOVA GORICA – Contemporary dance and the inner exploration of the human being: this is the perspective through which the dance poetics of MN Dance Company can be understood. Over recent years, the company has developed significantly in artistic quality and established itself on a broader stage. One could even say on a European level, as the Gorica-based company was among the standout participants in the programme of the European Capital of Culture – GO! 2025.
The artistic vision, both conceptually and technically, is naturally guided by the company’s founders and current artistic directors, Michal Rynia and Nastja Bremec Rynia. Together they create choreographies in which they also perform.
For the company’s newest project, the dance diptych Within – Beyond, the choreographic duo collaborated with Miloš Isailović. The first part of the diptych, Within, was created by Michal Rynia and Nastja Bremec Rynia, while the second part, Beyond, was choreographed by Isailović.
The division between the two works was made even more apparent by the performance spaces. The members of MN Dance Company performed Within inside the SNG Nova Gorica theatre, while Beyond took place outside, on the stage of the new Amphitheatre. The world premiere of the diptych, a co-production between the dance company and the Nova Gorica theatre, took place on 27 June in Nova Gorica.
Clean and Elegant
MN Dance Company develops a contemporary dance language that does not usually tell a conventional story but instead explores emotional atmospheres and the emotional experiences of both performers and audience members.
The seven performers, including the leading choreographic duo themselves, delve in Within into the exploration of human intimacy. Against a soundscape that was more sonic than musical in the traditional sense (the entire score was pre-recorded), the dancers sought to portray an individual’s search for personal essence, closeness and distance from others, the desire for personal freedom and independence, while at the same time longing for intimate connection.
Love, understood as an expression of personal growth and taking responsibility for another person—while never completely abandoning the desire to preserve one’s own freedom despite possible consequences—plays a central role.
Particularly expressive was the duet performed by the two choreographers, which was also among the most refined moments of the evening from a dance perspective.
Into the quietness of this intimate experience, however, Rynia and Bremec Rynia introduce English-language songs. As is often the case in their work, one of the performers—in this instance a female dancer—sings a song, or part of one, live into a microphone. Dance and movement alone, it seems, do not express everything the creators wish to communicate.
Although far less than in Borderless Body, the performance created for GO! 2025, references again emerge to an increasingly technology-driven world and humanity’s place within it. The exploration of personal intimacy therefore also becomes an examination of contemporary ways of living. A person must first come to know themselves in order to confront the outside world, which, translated into the language of dance, appears as a relationship with space.
As is characteristic of the choreographic partnership of Michal Rynia and Nastja Bremec Rynia, the choreography is clean and elegant, and the performance equally so.
The stage design also deserves brief mention, although contemporary dance productions generally employ minimal scenography. The stage was darkened, while seven standing lights outlined a semicircle. Before the performance began, the dancers were enclosed within a circular structure—they were literally within.
Youthfully Playful
The outdoor stage also featured only a few scenic elements, scattered across different parts of the performance area. The lighting design was completely different: unlike the indoor performance, where the action unfolded primarily in the centre of the stage, Beyond occupied various parts of the outdoor stage. The most striking group scenes, performed by the eight dancers, nevertheless took place beneath a single light in the centre.
Serbian choreographer Miloš Isailović approached Beyond with a dynamic choreography that was, at times, youthfully playful. The theme revolved around an individual’s search for connection with others, exploring both successful and unsuccessful attempts at forming relationships.
Different partnerships constantly emerged; sometimes a third person intervened, leading to misunderstandings and moments of confrontation and resolution. The choreography is built from scenes involving solo performers and small groups, culminating in a final sequence in which all the dancers come together in what resembles a cleansing ritual.
With this two-part project, MN Dance Company has once again demonstrated its artistic creativity and its maturity as both choreographers and performers.
Primorski dnevnik
Breda Pahor, Primorski dnevnik / 1. Jul 2026
WITHIN - BEYOND
Michal Rynia, Nastja Bremec Rynia, Miloš Isailović
Premiere
27 June 2026
SNG Nova Gorica
Production:
MN Dance Company
Co-production:
SNG Nova Gorica
Creators:
WITHIN
Choreography, visual concept and music selection: Michal Rynia, Nastja Bremec Rynia
Light designer: Matjaž Bajc
Sound designer: Stojan Nemec
Dancers: Luka Vodopivec, Rebecca Granzotto, Petra Seruga, David Micu, Anneya Gelis, Michal Rynia, Nastja Bremec Rynia
BEYOND
Choreographer: Miloš Isailović
Assistant choreographer: Anja Moderndorfer
Music: Ana Krstajić
Light designer: Matjaž Bajc
Sound designer: Stojan Nemec
Dancers: Eri Nishibara, Nathan Dhugues, Elia Zahnd, Iva Ilievska, Alessandra Russo, Nicoletta Carenzi, Uhaina Montet, Lucy Woodhouse
Rebecca Granzotto
Michal Rynia
David Micu
Anneya Gelis
Luka Vodopivec
Nastja Bremec Rynia
Petra Seruga
Miloš Isailović
Anja Moderndorfer
Uhaina Montet
Iva Ilievska
Alessandra Russo
Elia Zahnd
Eri Nishibara
Lucy Woodhouse
Nicoletta Carenzi
Nathan Dhugues
RTVSLO.SI: Znotraj - Onkraj, plesni diptih, ki premišljuje o lastnem položaju v svetu
The contemporary dance company MN Dance Company premiered the diptych Within – Beyond at the SNG Nova Gorica Theatre, created by choreographers Michal Rynia, Nastja Bremec Rynia, and Miloš Isailović.
By Breda Pahor
NOVA GORICA – Contemporary dance and the inner exploration of the human being: this is the perspective through which the dance poetics of MN Dance Company can be understood. Over recent years, the company has developed significantly in artistic quality and established itself on a broader stage. One could even say on a European level, as the Gorica-based company was among the standout participants in the programme of the European Capital of Culture – GO! 2025.
The artistic vision, both conceptually and technically, is naturally guided by the company’s founders and current artistic directors, Michal Rynia and Nastja Bremec Rynia. Together they create choreographies in which they also perform.
For the company’s newest project, the dance diptych Within – Beyond, the choreographic duo collaborated with Miloš Isailović. The first part of the diptych, Within, was created by Michal Rynia and Nastja Bremec Rynia, while the second part, Beyond, was choreographed by Isailović.
The division between the two works was made even more apparent by the performance spaces. The members of MN Dance Company performed Within inside the SNG Nova Gorica theatre, while Beyond took place outside, on the stage of the new Amphitheatre. The world premiere of the diptych, a co-production between the dance company and the Nova Gorica theatre, took place on 27 June in Nova Gorica.
Clean and Elegant
MN Dance Company develops a contemporary dance language that does not usually tell a conventional story but instead explores emotional atmospheres and the emotional experiences of both performers and audience members.
The seven performers, including the leading choreographic duo themselves, delve in Within into the exploration of human intimacy. Against a soundscape that was more sonic than musical in the traditional sense (the entire score was pre-recorded), the dancers sought to portray an individual’s search for personal essence, closeness and distance from others, the desire for personal freedom and independence, while at the same time longing for intimate connection.
Love, understood as an expression of personal growth and taking responsibility for another person—while never completely abandoning the desire to preserve one’s own freedom despite possible consequences—plays a central role.
Particularly expressive was the duet performed by the two choreographers, which was also among the most refined moments of the evening from a dance perspective.
Into the quietness of this intimate experience, however, Rynia and Bremec Rynia introduce English-language songs. As is often the case in their work, one of the performers—in this instance a female dancer—sings a song, or part of one, live into a microphone. Dance and movement alone, it seems, do not express everything the creators wish to communicate.
Although far less than in Borderless Body, the performance created for GO! 2025, references again emerge to an increasingly technology-driven world and humanity’s place within it. The exploration of personal intimacy therefore also becomes an examination of contemporary ways of living. A person must first come to know themselves in order to confront the outside world, which, translated into the language of dance, appears as a relationship with space.
As is characteristic of the choreographic partnership of Michal Rynia and Nastja Bremec Rynia, the choreography is clean and elegant, and the performance equally so.
The stage design also deserves brief mention, although contemporary dance productions generally employ minimal scenography. The stage was darkened, while seven standing lights outlined a semicircle. Before the performance began, the dancers were enclosed within a circular structure—they were literally within.
Youthfully Playful
The outdoor stage also featured only a few scenic elements, scattered across different parts of the performance area. The lighting design was completely different: unlike the indoor performance, where the action unfolded primarily in the centre of the stage, Beyond occupied various parts of the outdoor stage. The most striking group scenes, performed by the eight dancers, nevertheless took place beneath a single light in the centre.
Serbian choreographer Miloš Isailović approached Beyond with a dynamic choreography that was, at times, youthfully playful. The theme revolved around an individual’s search for connection with others, exploring both successful and unsuccessful attempts at forming relationships.
Different partnerships constantly emerged; sometimes a third person intervened, leading to misunderstandings and moments of confrontation and resolution. The choreography is built from scenes involving solo performers and small groups, culminating in a final sequence in which all the dancers come together in what resembles a cleansing ritual.
With this two-part project, MN Dance Company has once again demonstrated its artistic creativity and its maturity as both choreographers and performers.
Primorski dnevnik
Breda Pahor, Primorski dnevnik / 1. Jul 2026
